Mobile Audio Demand to Grow

TRG, an automotive telematics research firm, reveals data which suggests a huge surge in desire for automobiles equipped with integration solutions for iPods and others.

Newly released data from automotive telematics research firm TRG suggests there is a large growth in demand for aftermarket device integration into today’s automobiles. This is especially true of iPod integration solutions.

39 models from current major auto brands currently sell U.S. vehicles with some type of iPod or portable audio integration. TRG forecasts that by 2011, 28 million cars in the U.S. and 73 million worldwide will be equipped with some type of iPod integration setup. Additionally, automotive auxiliary inputs for portable audio devices in general will expand to about 60 million cars in the U.S. in the same time frame.

Bluetooth A2DP audio interfaces were projected as well, with an estimated 8.5 million cars being outfitted in the U.S. by 2011.

“The rapid ramp up of available solutions from automotive OEMs is a stark contrast to the normal five-year product development cycle in the automotive industry,” says Phil Magney, founder and principal analyst for Telematics Research Group (TRG). “The variety of solutions reflects the swiftly changing landscape of the mobile audio market where branded audio solutions, surround sound and mobile device integration are driving market growth.”